Department for Transport

Road Traffic Offences

lord bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much they estimate it would cost a local authority, or local authorities acting together, in England to implement civil enforcement powers under the Traffic Management Act 2004, covering 100,000 people.

baroness sugg: The Department for Transport does not produce estimates of this kind. Local authorities are responsible for considering the financial implications of civil enforcement when deciding whether to apply for these powers. Their estimates will reflect a range of local factors, such as geography, road use, parking demand, specific traffic issues and the proposed intensity of enforcement.

Axle Weights: Weighing Equipment

lord bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byBaroness Sugg on 9 January (HL4413), what information they have on how often the weighbridges referred to are used.

baroness sugg: In 2017, 51 weighbridge sites were used to carry out enforcement action. The combined number of days that each weighbridge site was used was 3,762.

Driving Tests

lord mawson: To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of the fee for the DVLA theory test is allocated to the contractor responsible for delivering those tests; and what is their estimate of the proportion of those fees that represents profit for the contractor.

baroness sugg: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) cannot disclose what percentage of fee is allocated to the contractor as this information is commercial in confidence. DVSA does not hold any data on the proportion of fees that represents profit for the contractor.

Driving Tests

lord mawson: To ask Her Majesty's Government why those who fail the DVLA theory test are not provided with a read out of which questions they failed and what the correct answers to those questions were.

baroness sugg: After a candidate has completed their theory test, they are given a summary of their performance by topic area. This tells them how many questions they answered incorrectly in each topic area. They can then concentrate their revision on the areas they require more practice. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) provides learning materials (books, apps and online support) which are organised by topic area, making it easier for focused revision. If DVSA identified the questions which a candidate answered incorrectly, it would allow candidates to learn the answers by rote, without necessarily gaining the required knowledge and understanding needed to drive safely.

European Aviation Safety Agency

lord razzall: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they planto negotiate continued membership of the European Aviation Safety Agency after Brexit.

lord razzall: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they intend to put in place after Brexit to ensure equivalent air safety standards with the EU in the event of discontinuation of membership of the European Aviation Safety Agency.

baroness sugg: The Government is considering carefully all the potential implications arising from the UK’s exit from the EU, including the implications for continued or discontinued participation in the European Aviation Safety Agency. It is the Government’s intention to maintain consistently high standards of aviation safety once we have left the EU. As part of the exit negotiations the Government will discuss with the EU and Member States how best to continue cooperation in the field of aviation safety and standards.

Roads: Accidents

lord robertson of port ellen: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have made any assessment of the UK meeting the Sustainable Development Goal target of halving the number of road traffic fatalities by 2020.

baroness sugg: The UK has one of the lowest road traffic fatality rates of all European countries, but we are not complacent. The British Road Safety Statement sets out the Government’s commitment to improve road safety further and reduce the number of people killed or injured on the roads every year and can be viewed on gov.uk and available in the libraries of the House.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

lord framlingham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their latest estimate of the final total cost of HS2.

baroness sugg: At the 2015 Spending Review (SR15), the Government restated the long-term Funding Envelope for delivery of the full HS2 scheme of £55.7bn (Quarter 1 2015 prices), of which £27.18bn has been set for Phase One and £28.55bn for Phase Two. We are determined to deliver HS2 within its total Funding Envelope of £55.7bn and have set HS2 Ltd cost targets which would deliver the programme below this amount.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

lord framlingham: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to scrap HS2; and if so, on what they intend to spend the money saved.

baroness sugg: The Government is committed to delivering HS2 which remains on track, with strong cross-party support. The case for HS2 rests on strong foundations. It will be the new backbone of our national rail network and will help build an economy that works for all.

Railways

lord greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government what the criteria were for choosing the list of potential rail reopenings in paragraph 2.43 of the policy paper Connecting People: a strategic vision for rail (Cm 9519); and why the reopening of the Colne to Skipton portion of the Preston to Leeds line via Blackburn and Burnley was not included.

baroness sugg: The schemes mentioned in paragraph 2.43 of ‘Connecting people: a strategic vision for rail’ were provided as illustrative examples only. All schemes will need to demonstrate a strong business case when seeking any available government funding, and will be considered on their merits whether they are mentioned in the strategy or not.

East Coast Railway Line

baroness randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether (1) Virgin Trains, and (2) Stagecoach, will be permitted to bid for any future franchise or partnership arrangements established for train services on the East Coast Main Line.

baroness sugg: All passport holders at the time will be offered the opportunity to bid. Like others, Virgin and Stagecoach will need to meet all relevant requirements.

East Coast Railway Line

baroness randerson: To ask Her Majesty's Government what changes have been (1)announced,and (2)made, to Network Rail’s plans for improvements to the infrastructure of the East Coast Main Line, since Virgin Trains and Stagecoach were awarded the franchise in November 2014.

baroness sugg: This government set out ambitious outcomes for connectivity and capacity on the East Coast Main Line as part of the 2012 High Level Output Specification. The East Coast Main Line infrastructure enhancements will enable capacity for an additional two trains per hour between King’s Cross and Doncaster and an additional train per hour between York and Newcastle. The enhancements will also enable the introduction of the new Intercity Express Programme trains which will increase reliability, seating capacity and reduce journey times, allowing the fastest services to achieve 4 hours from London to Edinburgh and 2 hours from London to Leeds. The first of these enhancements, the opening of a new platform at Doncaster, has already been delivered. From the start of this franchise to date, all infrastructure upgrades planned for the East Coast have been delivered. Further upgrades for this route are planned but are not due to be completed at this stage.

Aviation: Northern Cyprus

lord ahmed: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will consider reinstating touchdown-only flights from the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus to the UK.

baroness sugg: The UK requests that additional security measures are applied to all flights from Turkey to the UK, including to transit flights from the northern part of Cyprus. We continue to consider that this is a proportionate security measure to ensure the safety and security of the travelling public.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Ethiopia: Political Prisoners

lord ahmed: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are aware of any British citizens being held as political prisoners in Ethiopia; and what representations they have made to the government of Ethiopia regarding their release.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office records the charges, or category of charge, on which individuals are detained, where that information is provided to consular staff. We are currently aware of a small number of British nationals detained in Ethiopia, but not necessarily as political prisoners. The UK has repeatedly raised human rights concerns with the Ethiopian Government, including around the arrest and imprisonment of people for their political views. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office provides consular support to detainees as usual.

Southern Africa: Education

lord german: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many education projects have been supported by the British Council in (1) Swaziland, (2) Botswana and (3) Lesotho, in each of the last five years.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The British Council have advised that in each of the last five years the number of education projects the British Council has supported in each country is:Country20132014201520162017Swaziland11222Botswana33332Lesotho11222

India: Mining

lord harries of pentregarth: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that mining companies listed on the London Stock Exchange are engaging in illegal land grabs in protected tribal lands in India.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The FCO has not made an assessment. Nor has the FCO received any recent representation on this issue. The Government expects multinational enterprises to operate responsibly abroad, and encourages them to do so, in line with the domestic laws of the countries in which they operate, in the spirit of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, and international standards including the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.

Bahrain: Detainees

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 9 January (HL4382), on the basis of what information other than the structure of the oversight bodies in Bahrain they have made the assessment that the Ombudsman service in Bahrain is independent.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The British Embassy in Bahrain has a continuing dialogue with both the Government of Bahrain and all human rights oversight bodies. The Ministry of Interior Ombudsman was established as an independent oversight body by Royal Decree in 2012. In 2013 the International Ombudsman Institute acknowledged that the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman fulfils its criteria for voting membership stating that the organisation "is functionally independent of any public authority over which jurisdiction is held." It was the first organisation of its kind in the region and remains unique. In 2014 the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman's Office won the EU's Chaillot Prize for the promotion of human rights in the Gulf Cooperation Council region.We understand that investigations are carried out on receipt of a complaint and we continue to encourage these to be swift, thorough and transparent.

Bahrain: Finance

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 8 January (HL 4423), what is the process for signing off each individual programme; and what assessment they carry out on each individual programme to ensure that it complies with domestic and international human rights obligations.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Each programme and project funded by the British Government in Bahrain goes through a rigorous compliance process before commencement. This includes an Overseas Security & Justice Assistance process where appropriate. All projects are regularly monitored and reviewed to ensure that training provided by or on behalf of the British Government complies with our domestic and international human rights obligations.

Bahrain: Finance

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 8 January (HL 4423), what assessment they have carried out on the effectiveness of each programme they have funded; and whether this information is publicly available.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: Our programmes undergo continual assessment throughout their implementation to ensure that they are on track for delivery, as well as upon completion of each individual project. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has provided numerous updates on its programme work in its annual Human Rights reports, as well as through Freedom of Information Act requests. This information can be found on the gov.uk website. Many of our projects focus on capacity building and the impact of our work has been, and continues to be, positive.

Department of Health and Social Care

NHS: Sick Leave

lord clark of windermere: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the latest rate of absence through sickness of NHS staff; and what were thecomparablefigures for each of the last 20 years.

lord o'shaughnessy: The latest rate of sickness of National Health Service staff is 4.16% (2016/17). Comparable figures from 2009/10, extracted from the Electronic Staff Record (ESR), are shown in the following table and is information collected from ESR by NHS Digital. Sickness absence data collected by the Department before 2009 used a different methodology and are not comparable. Sickness absence figures for 2017/18 will be published in July 2018. YearSickness absence rate (%)2009-104.402010-114.162011-124.122012-134.242013-144.062014-154.252015-164.152016-174.16

NHS: Bullying

lord clark of windermere: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the level of bullying reported in the latest NHS Staff Survey; and what were the comparable figures for each of the last 20 years.

lord o'shaughnessy: Employers are responsible for tackling bullying and harassment of staff. The Department is not complacent and Ministers are committed to meeting their manifesto commitment in tackling rates of bullying and harassment which are far too high. To that end, the Department is working with employers and unions in partnership to prioritise actions including the importance of line manager training, continuing to raise the profile of the issue and using Care Quality Commission inspections to assess progress, as we enter the second year of the national Social Partnership Forum’s Tackling Bullying in the NHS: A collective call to action published in December 2016. A copy of Tackling Bullying in the NHS is attached.NHS England has provided the information and statistics which are attached due to the size of the data. The NHS Staff Survey was first undertaken in 2003. Questions about harassment, bullying and abuse have been included each year since then although it is not always possible to compare results from different years due to amendments to questions or survey method. We have, therefore, put together figures from the Staff Survey in different groups i.e. figures for 2012 – 2016 are comparable but not with other groupings; similarly, those for 2010/11, 2004-9 and 2003. The results from 2012 to 2016 are comparable.



NHS Staff Survey tables
(Word Document, 15.39 KB)




Tackling Bullying in the NHS
(PDF Document, 3.68 MB)

Department of Health and Social Care: Reorganisation

lord greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the change of name of the Department of Health to the Department of Health and Social Care, whether there have been any changes in (1) the responsibilities of that Department, and (2) the arrangements in place between HM Government and local authorities with social care responsibilities in relation to health and social care; and if not, whether any such changes are planned.

lord o'shaughnessy: The Department has taken responsibility for the Green Paper on Care and Support but there are no changes, neither are there any such changes planned, to the arrangements the Government has in place with local authorities in terms of their duties under the Care Act 2014.

NHS: Standards

lord warner: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to incorporate access targets from the NHS Constitution into the performance ratings of NHS Trusts that are produced by the Care Quality Commission.

lord o'shaughnessy: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has provided the following response:The CQC already reports on access targets under the key inspection question: ‘are they responsive to people’s needs’. The CQC runs analysis on these indicators to support its monitoring, inspection and ratings of this key question.

Clinical Trials: EU Law

baroness hayter of kentish town: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the consequences of failing to align with the forthcoming EU Clinical Trials Regulation on (1)the UKmedical research sector, and (2) patient access to cross-border clinical trials.

baroness hayter of kentish town: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend that the EU Clinical Trials Regulation 536/2014, which is not due to come into effect until after the UK has left the EU, will have direct effect in UK law.

lord o'shaughnessy: The Government values the strong collaborative partnerships that we have across the European Union in the areas of science, research and innovation, and as part of exit negotiations is working to ensure that we have the best possible environment in which to support the United Kingdom medical research sector and patient access to cross-border clinical trials after we leave the EU.In the United Kingdom, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, Health Research Authority, ethics services, National Institute for Health Research and the National Health Service have been working towards implementation of the new European Clinical Trials Regulation (CTR) since it was agreed in 2014. The application date of the CTR across the EU is yet to be set by the European Commission, but is expected to be in 2019.Whatever the outcome of the UK’s EU exit negotiations, the current regulatory approval legislation will stay in place until such time as any changes are needed, so there will be no interruption in UK clinical trials approval. The EU Withdrawal Bill will make the current UK clinical trials regulations (2004 2001/1031) that implement the clinical trials directive (2001/20/EC) operable on exit day and this is not contingent on any decision about whether the CTR will apply in the future.

Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has fully engaged with staff in accordance with the NHS constitution when considering major changes in the way services are provided.

lord o'shaughnessy: The Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust have informed NHS Improvement they carried out informal staff engagement about the proposed changes during October 2017, in addition to a formal 30-day staff consultation during November 2017.

Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust fully consulted with partners in their local Sustainability and Transformation Partnerships over proposals to establish a wholly-owned company to run estates and other support services.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust fully consulted with staff over the full details of proposals to establish a wholly-owned company to run estates and other support services.

lord hunt of kings heath: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions, if any, they had with the Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust about options for the Trust to make major savings, before the Trust proposed to establish a wholly-owned company to run estates and other support services; and what options were considered.

lord o'shaughnessy: Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust briefed all members of the Somerset Sustainability and Transformation Plan footprint (Somerset and Taunton Foundation Trust, Somerset Partnership Foundation Trust, Somerset Clinical Comissioning Group and Somerset County Council) about its plans to establish a wholly-owned company to run its estates and other support services. As required by the National NHS Standard Contract, the Trust sought and received permission from Somerset CCG, Dorset CCG and NHS England Specialist Commissioning for some of the estates services previously delivered by the Trust to be delivered by the new wholly-owned subsidiary.NHS Improvement has advised that following legal advice sought by the Trust, informal staff consultation took place in October 2017 and that a further formal consultation took place in November 2017.National Health Service organisations are responsible for deciding locally the most appropriate structures they need to deliver services to their patients within available resources.

Alzheimer's Disease and Parkinson's Disease

the marquess of lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support research and drug development for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease; and what assessment they have made of Pfizer’s recent decision to end funding for research into both diseases.

lord o'shaughnessy: The Government’s 2020 Dementia Challenge is galvanising dementia and neurodegeneration research including into Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. The National Institute for Health Research, which is funded through the Department, is playing a central role in ensuring the success of this strategy. The Prime Minister’s Challenge on Dementia 2020 Implementation Plan, sets out how funding partners, including from Government, the life sciences industry and charities, will make this the best country in the world for dementia and neurodegeneration research. A copy of the Implementation Plan is attached. Researchers need targets to develop drugs and treatments. Whilst it is inevitable that companies such as Pfizer will disinvest from unpromising approaches, research to better understand disease processes will lead to identification of new targets for the development of drugs and other treatments.



Prime Minister's Challenge on Dementia 2020
(PDF Document, 543.38 KB)

NHS: Negligence

lord sharkey: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many actions for clinical negligence were filed against NHS England institutions in each of the last ten years; how many of those actions were (1) brought to trial,and (2)withdrawn; and what was the average length of time between filing and conclusion.

lord o'shaughnessy: General practitioners’ (GPs) and dentists’ indemnity to cover clinical negligence payments is currently provided privately by Medical Defence Organisations. The Department does not have access to this information regarding primary care and dentistry.NHS Resolution has provided the following information:NHS Resolution has included all clinical negligence claims, excluding those against independent sector organisations.NHS Resolution has advised that many of these claims have not been settled yet and so the number of claims that have been taken to trial and the number of claims that have closed with nil damages will increase over time. Likewise the time to resolution, i.e. notification to settlement of damages, is based on claims that have settled so far. This figure will change when further claims have been resolved, especially in the more recent years. The following table shows clinical negligence claims notified 2007/08 to 2016/17 as at 31/03/2017 excluding claims against independent sector organisations.Year of NotificationNumber of Claims ReceivedNumber of Claims Settled with Nil DamagesNumber of Claims that have gone to TrialAverage Time from Notification to Settlement of Damages (years)2007/085,4681,933241.472008/096,0922,121371.442009/106,6561,897391.302010/118,6422,651481.262011/129,1322,840831.322012/1310,1173,343681.332013/1411,9083,968521.252014/1511,4043,758281.082015/1610,8413,23110.802016/1710,4411,31410.48

Prescriptions

lord blencathra: To ask Her Majesty's Government which medicines and foods that are readily available over the counter, or in shops, can be prescribed by GPs, and whether they intend to ban all such prescriptions.

lord o'shaughnessy: Some medicines and foods which are available to buy over the counter can be made available on prescription where they have a role in managing a patient’s clinical condition. A general practitioner is able to prescribe any product on the National Health Service they consider necessary for the treatment of their patient unless it is listed in Schedule 1 to the NHS (General Medical Services Contracts) (Prescription of Drugs etc.) Regulations 2004. However, the Department encourages prescribing in line with clinical and cost effective guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). NICE provides national guidance on the promotion of good health and the prevention and treatment of ill health.The Department has no plans to ban the prescribing of all over the counter medicines and medical foods on prescription.

Dental Services: Children

lord colwyn: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the total number of (1) primary care courses of treatment that contained tooth extractions, and (2) teeth extracted in primary care, in each year from 2010–11 to 2016–17, for children aged 0–17.

lord colwyn: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the total number of (1) primary care courses of treatment that contained tooth extractions, and (2) teeth extracted in primary care, in each year from 2010–11 to 2016–17, for adults aged 18 and over.

lord o'shaughnessy: The following table shows the total number of primary care courses of treatment that contained tooth extractions, and teeth extracted in primary care, in each year from 2010–11 to 2016–17, for children aged 0–17. YearCourse of TreatmentTeeth2016-17513,646909,7452015-16514,576917,3462014-15524,163946,1422013-14539,908976,7942012-13533,694963,5142011-12540,626964,8562010-11540,689964,841Source: NHS Digital The following table shows the total number of primary care courses of treatment that contained tooth extractions, and teeth extracted in primary care, in each year from 2010–11 to 2016–17, for adults aged 18 and over.   YearCourse of TreatmentTeeth2016-172,147,1353,120,8122015-162,156,0233,125,9992014-152,185,5183,150,4562013-142,226,0543,217,5522012-132,214,9743,194,5092011-122,190,2453,164,8812010-112,125,1203,061,914Source: NHS Digital

Department for International Development

Dominica: Hurricanes and Tornadoes

baroness lister of burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Bates on 21 December 2017 (HL4321), what level of support they will provide for reconstruction in Dominica following the hurricane damage.

lord bates: Dominica was devastated by Hurricanes Irma and Maria. The UK provided £7m in emergency support, including shelter, food and other essential supplies. We have also committed £25m to support reconstruction. These funds will be delivered through the UK Caribbean Infrastructure Fund, in partnership with the Caribbean Development Bank. A Post Disaster Needs Assessment and discussions with the government of Dominica are informing spending priorities, with a likely focus on repairing the island’s water supply system.The UK will also provide a further £8m to strengthen regional and national level disaster response mechanisms. Some of this funding will be used to provide expertise and oversight of the island’s reconstruction programme so that funds are used in the most effective way. All UK funded reconstruction will support the key principle of building back better, so that Caribbean countries and territories are better able to withstand future hurricanes and natural disasters.

Overseas Aid

lord carlile of berriew: To ask Her Majesty's Government what procedures and checks are in place to ensure that payments made by the Department for International Development cannot be used for terrorism purposes; and whether any payments have been (1) withdrawn, (2) refused, and (3)prohibited, since the beginning of 2015 on grounds connected with actual, suspected or potential terrorism.

lord bates: The Department for International Development has a zero tolerance approach to UK aid funds being diverted to fund terrorist activities and the UK Government publishes a list of prescribed extremist groups or organisations banned under UK law. The Department has robust measures in place to protect, prevent, and detect the diversion of aid. We have controls embedded through-out the programme cycle including a rigorous due diligence process and a comprehensive risk management framework which requires risks to be identified prior to any disbursement of aid.All organisations that receive funding from the Department are required to provide evidence about the use of funds, including audited financial statements which are examined as we monitor programme performance and delivery. All of our funding mechanisms allow the Department to terminate project funding early.Where there are allegations of misuse of aid funds, these are investigated fully by the Department’s specialist Counter Fraud Unit, and funds are always recovered to the fullest extent possible. Funds subject to such diversion have been stopped in the past and will continue to be stopped should there be substantive evidence of UK aid being connected in any way to terrorist activities. The Department’s procedure is to inform the relevant UK security agencies in such circumstances and, given the sensitivity of such cases and the fact that active criminal investigations are ongoing, we cannot release further details.

Overseas Aid

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what proportion of the UK's overseas development assistance can be spent by departments other than the Department for International Development according to the rules and regulations of the OECD.

lord bates: All ODA spent by the Department for International Development, and by other government departments and contributors is in line with the rules set out by the OECD DAC.

Overseas Aid

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what proportion of the UK overseas development assistance was not spent by the Department for International Development in the following years (1) 2013–14, (2) 2014–15, (3) 2015–16, and (4) 2016–17.

lord bates: Information on the amount of ODA spent by the UK Government can be found in the Statistics on International Development publication on gov.uk websiteFor ease of reference the table below sets out ODA spend by the Department for International Development and by other UK contributors.Table of UK ODA1 by contributor and proportion of total: 2013 to 2016 ODA contributor 2013201420152016£ millions% of total£ millions% of total£ millions% of total£ millions% of totalDFID10,01687.8%10,08486.2%9,77280.5%9,87473.8%Non—DFID1,39112.2%1,61613.8%2,36419.5%3,50726.2%Of which2 Other HMG Department1,16210.2%1,0769.2%1,59513.1%2,45518.3%Non-Departmental ODA 32292.0%5404.6%7686.3%1,0527.9%Total UK ODA11,40711,70012,13613,381 Source: Statistics on International Development.ODA is measured on a calendar year basis.Figures may not sum to total due to roundingNon-departmental ODA includes EU Attribution (Non-DFID), IMF Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust, Gift Aid, BBC World Service, Scottish Government, Colonial Pensions and Welsh Assembly.

Department for Education

Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education

lord northbourne: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that all state funded schools adequately prepare their pupils for the responsibilities of probable future parenthood.

lord agnew of oulton: Teachers are able to cover topics relating to parenting skills in their wider school curriculum, including in their personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education lessons. The non-statutory programme of study for PSHE includes the roles and responsibilities of parents, parenting skills, the value of family relationships, and the impact of separation, divorce and bereavement on families. The Children and Social Work Act 2017 placed a duty on the Secretary of State for Education to make Relationships Education at primary and Relationships and Sex Education at secondary, mandatory through regulations. The Act also provides a power to make PSHE mandatory in all schools. To ensure age appropriate and inclusive subject content for all key stages, the department is actively engaging with a wide range of stakeholders. As part of this work the department has launched a call for evidence, which will help inform the development of the regulations and guidance, and the types of support schools need for effective teaching of the subjects. The call for evidence, which closes on 12 February, is also seeking views on the future of PSHE. It can be accessed via this link: https://consult.education.gov.uk/life-skills/pshe-rse-call-for-evidence/.

Out-of-school Education: Hackney

lord warner: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Agnew of Oulton on 5 January (HL4335), what evidence they have for the statement that “there are far fewer unregistered schools than many had believed to be the case”, in the light of a recent report by the London Borough of Hackney Scrutiny Commission which stated that between 1,000 and 1,500 Charedi boys were in unregistered schools in that Borough; and what assessment they have made of Hackney Council’s findings in this regard.

lord warner: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will consider extending the definition of a school to cover part-time religious settings and expand the powers of entry, inspection and enforcement for local authorities to deal with unregistered schools in the light of recent findings in the London Borough of Hackney of the problems caused by such schools.

lord agnew of oulton: The evidence for the government’s statement is in Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector’s annual report, attached, published in December 2017, which includes statistics about the work of Ofsted’s unregistered schools team. Over an 18 month period, the Ofsted team looked into many possible settings but determined that only 38 of them had been operating as unregistered schools, and secured that, as at August 2017, 34 of those 38 settings ceased operating illegally. We are aware of the recent findings in the Borough of Hackney, which refer to between 1,000 – 1,500 Charedi boys in out-of-school settings in that borough. The report made clear that these were yeshivas, offering religious teaching, in settings that do not meet the criteria to register as independent schools, but were operating as out-of-school settings.The government’s Counter Extremism Strategy, published in 2015, set out plans to introduce a new system of oversight for out-of-school settings which teach children intensively, including part-time religious settings. We undertook a call for evidence to learn more about the range of settings, and to determine the potential scope and impact of introducing a regulatory system. As well as considering the views of those that responded to the call for evidence, the department has been working with a range of stakeholders to strengthen our understanding of these settings, which vary considerably in their characteristics and the activities and education they offer. We will make an announcement on the outcome shortly. It is Ofsted, rather than local authorities, that have powers in relation to unregistered schools, to collect evidence to support prosecutions. The department and Ofsted operate a joint team on unregistered schools and work together closely on all relevant issues, including on the extent of Ofsted’s powers, which are always kept in view.



Ofsted Annual Report 2016/17
(PDF Document, 3.63 MB)

Out-of-school Education

lord warner: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Agnew of Oulton on 5 January (HL4335), what steps they are taking to ensure that the 34 unregistered schools that ceased to operate as a result of Ofsted action will not re-establish themselves elsewhere, given that no operators of the illegal closed schools were prosecuted.

lord agnew of oulton: In most cases, proprietors voluntarily complied with the law following the inspection by Ofsted, either by closing completely or by reducing their operation to a lawful part time provision. Some settings also went on to register as independent schools, so that they could legitimately re-open or increase their hours to full-time. Ofsted carries out further inspections without notice where it has reasonable cause to believe that an unregistered independent school continues to operate, either at the same premises or if it has re-established elsewhere. The Ofsted team draws significantly on local knowledge, from the local authority and other sources, on where such settings may be operating. The Department for Education/Ofsted joint team works together closely on all these issues. This remains a high priority for both the government and Ofsted.

Ministry of Justice

Liverpool Prison

lord lee of trafford: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Keen of Elie on 5 January (HL4312), when was the most recent ministerial visit to HM Prison Liverpool.

lord keen of elie: The Prisons Minister Rory Stewart visited HMP Liverpool on the 22nd January.

Department for Work and Pensions

Personal Independence Payment

baroness thomas of winchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many medically qualified doctors are Personal Independence Payment assessors.

baroness buscombe: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 18 January 2018.The correct answer should have been:

There is no requirement for Personal Independence Payment assessments to be undertaken specifically by doctors. The assessment is not a medical assessment requiring the assessor to diagnose a condition or its severity and recommend treatment options. The focus is on ensuring that the Health Professionals are experts in disability analysis, considering the effects of health conditions and impairments on an individual’s daily life. Capita employ one medically qualified doctor as a Personal Independence Payment assessor.Independent Assessment Services do not currently employ any doctors as Personal Independent Payment assessors.

baroness buscombe: There is no requirement for Personal Independence Payment assessments to be undertaken specifically by doctors. The assessment is not a medical assessment requiring the assessor to diagnose a condition or its severity and recommend treatment options. The focus is on ensuring that the Health Professionals are experts in disability analysis, considering the effects of health conditions and impairments on an individual’s daily life. Capita employ one medically qualified doctor as a Personal Independence Payment assessor.Independent Assessment Services do not currently employ any doctors as Personal Independent Payment assessors.

Social Security Benefits

baroness thomas of winchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Department for Work and Pensions has a target to uphold 80 per cent of benefit decisions that are subject to Mandatory Reconsideration.

baroness buscombe: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 18 January 2018.The correct answer should have been:

There has never been a mandatory reconsideration target for upholding original decisions.The 80 per cent figure was an internal measurement only used to indicate areas where the quality of initial decisions may not be meeting our expected high standards, therefore enabling us to investigate and address if required.Given the confusion the 80 per cent figure has caused, we no longer use this internal measure. We instead assure quality by focussing more on the individual claimant journey, looking at what we could have done better and identifying any training needs and process improvements that can be made throughout this journey.

baroness buscombe: There has never been a mandatory reconsideration target for upholding original decisions.The 80 per cent figure was an internal measurement only used to indicate areas where the quality of initial decisions may not be meeting our expected high standards, therefore enabling us to investigate and address if required.Given the confusion the 80 per cent figure has caused, we no longer use this internal measure. We instead assure quality by focussing more on the individual claimant journey, looking at what we could have done better and identifying any training needs and process improvements that can be made throughout this journey.

Personal Independence Payment

baroness thomas of winchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Personal Independence Payment assessors have been disciplined for making misleading reports on the basis of which decisionswere made that were later overturned by a tribunal, in each of the last three years.

baroness buscombe: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 18 January 2018.The correct answer should have been:

Decisions on entitlement to Personal Independent Payment are made by DWP Case Managers not the Assessment Provider. When a decision is overturned at appeal it does not necessarily mean the original decision was wrong. Many claimants provide additional written evidence not available to the original DWP Case Manager.

baroness buscombe: Decisions on entitlement to Personal Independent Payment are made by DWP Case Managers not the Assessment Provider. When a decision is overturned at appeal it does not necessarily mean the original decision was wrong. Many claimants provide additional written evidence not available to the original DWP Case Manager.

Home Office

Leigh Day

lord blencathra: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byBaroness Williams of Trafford on 18 July 2017 (HL423), whether the Home Office will now refer Leigh Day to the National Crime Agency for investigation of any possible misconduct.

baroness williams of trafford: The National Crime Agency (NCA) is operationally independent of the Home Office. As set out in Section four of the Crime and Courts Act 2013, and the ‘Revised Framework Document for the NCA’, published in May 2015, the Director General of the Agency is responsible for all decisions about which operations to conduct and how they should be conducted. It is therefore not for the Home Office to refer matters for investigation.

Deportation

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Immigration Removal Orders were executed in (1) 2005, (2) 2010, (3) 2012, and (4) 2015.

baroness williams of trafford: The Home Office does not hold the information you have requested in a reportable format. The Government publishes Immigration Statistics which details the number of enforced removals by year. This can be found at: Removals and Voluntary Departures data tables Immigration Statistics October – December 2015https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-october-to-december-2015-data-tables

Deportation: Appeals

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many appeals against Immigration Removal Orders were successful in (1) 2005, (2) 2010, (3) 2012, and (4) 2015; and what percentage of the total number of Noticesthose appeals werein each of those years.

baroness williams of trafford: The Home Office does not hold the data requested in a reportable format.

Deportation

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what financial and other assistance they give to those due to be removed on immigration grounds during the seven day periodwhen those individuals are allowed to appeal.

baroness williams of trafford: The Home Office provides accommodation and support to migrants only in specific circumstances during the appeal period. These are for asylum seekers under section 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 if they do not have adequate accommodation or the means of obtaining it, and some persons granted immigration bail if they are subject to a residence condition, are unable to support themselves at the specified address and exceptional circumstances apply. The Home Office also provides assistance and advice to facilitate voluntary returns.

Migrant Workers

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government how they plan to address reported concerns among business leaders that the current net migration target risks leaving the UK labour market short of critical skills.

baroness williams of trafford: The Government is clear that the UK is open for business. We recognise that the UK benefits from immigration, but not uncontrolled immigration. Reducing net migration is not incompatible with continuing to attract international talent to come here to study and work here. There are a range of options for the future immigration system and it is important that we understand the impacts on the different sectors of the economy and the labour market. We will ensure that decisions on the long-term system are based on evidence.On 27 July 2017, we commissioned the independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to gather evidence on patterns of EU migration and the role of migration in the wider economy. The MAC will advise on the economic and social impacts of the UK’s exit from the EU and also on how the UK’s immigration system should be aligned with a modern industrial strategy. It will report in September 2018.

Asylum

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what efforts are being made to organise safe routes for asylum seekers, avoiding dangerous sea crossings.

baroness williams of trafford: We operate four resettlement schemes, working closely with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to provide safe and legal routes to the UK for the most vulnerable refugees: Gateway, Mandate, the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement scheme and the Vulnerable Children’s Resettlement scheme.The UK supports the principle that those in need of international protection should claim in the first safe country they arrive. The UK Government has committed more than £2.46 billion in response to the conflict in Syria. We have also allocated more than £100 million assistance in response to the Mediterranean migration crisis, mostly within Europe. The Prime Minister announced a further £75 million for the Central Mediterranean migration fund in July 2017We have a comprehensive framework for refugees and their families to be safely reunited in the UK. Our family reunion policy allows immediate family members of those granted protection here to reunite with them. The Immigration Rules also provide for relatives with protection in the UK to sponsor children in serious and compelling circumstances. This policy is designed to provide a safe and legal route for close, dependent family members to join their refugee family in the UK, avoiding the need for them to make dangerous journeys to seek protection.The UK continues to actively support the UN negotiations on the Migration and Refugee Compacts; our aim is to ensure these focus on supporting refugees and migrants closer to home, preventing dangerous journeys, tackling smuggling, as well as encouraging more resettlement globally.

Immigration: Greece

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what co-operation on immigration matters exists between the UK and Greece.

baroness williams of trafford: The Government continues to work closely with all European partners, including Greece, to address migration issues. The EU-Turkey deal, along with border closures in the Western Balkans, has contributed to a significant reduction in the flow of migrants and loss of life in the Aegean. The UK has played a leading role in supporting Greece and Turkey to implement the EU-Turkey Statement.We continue our long-running specialist deployments to the EU Commission team in Athens and are providing further expert support to the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) in the Greek hotspots in line with the particular needs identified.In addition, we have a Border Force cutter, HMC VALIANT, based in the Aegean and the provision of debriefers, screeners and interpreters to support the Hellenic Coastguard and Frontex Operation Poseidon and tackle Organised Immigration Crime (OIC).

Refugees: Children

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what measures they intend to put in place better to track displaced children across Europe.

baroness williams of trafford: Unless they are on UK territory, migrant children remain the responsibility and under the jurisdiction of the European Member State in which they are present. The Government notes the European Commission’s proposal from 2016 on a new Eurodac Regulation. Eurodac is the EU fingerprint database of asylum seekers and certain illegal migrants. This is entirely subject to negotiations, but it is interesting to see the Commission’s proposal to reduce the age of stored fingerprints for children from 14 years, to six years of age. As noted in the Government’s Explanatory Memorandum in 2016 on this proposal, we welcome this proposed change as it may help improve monitoring migrant children on the move.

Asylum: Fees and Charges

lord roberts of llandudno: To ask Her Majesty's Government what application fees, if any,give potential asylum seekers more rapid progress through the UK's asylum process.

baroness williams of trafford: There are no fees for asylum applications and no provision to pay for an expedited service.

Children in Care: Refugees

baroness stroud: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many unaccompanied refugee children were transferred to local authority care under section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016 in each quarter of 2017; what were the countries of origin of those children; and how many unaccompanied refugee children transferred to local authority care in this way (1) are still in local authority care, (2) have aged out of the care system, (3) have subsequently been reunited with family, or (4) have gone missing.

baroness williams of trafford: In 2016, we transferred over 900 unaccompanied children to the UK from Europe, including more than 750 from France. On 30 November, the Government published data on the numbers of children transferred to the UK from the Calais camp clearance. The data can be accessed here:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/transfers-of-children-to-the-uk-from-the-calais-operation-november-2017We are fully committed to delivering our commitment to transfer the specified number of 480 children under section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016 and are working very closely with Member States, as well as the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and NGO partners to identify and transfer children to the UK in line with each individual Member State’s national laws. Over 220 children are already here and transfers are ongoing.The Home Office publishes a range of data on asylum claims from unaccompanied children which can be found at the following link. This data relates to all unaccompanied children who have claimed asylum in the UK and does not provide a breakdown depending on the child’s method of entry.https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-july-to-september-2017/how-many-people-do-we-grant-asylum-or-protection-to

Refugees: Children

baroness stroud: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many unaccompanied refugee children have been brought to the UK under the Dublin III Regulation in each quarter of 2017; andwhat werethe countries of origin of those children.

baroness williams of trafford: The Dublin III Regulation is a long-standing mechanism between EU Member States to determine responsibility for examining asylum claims. It is not an application route for transfer to the UK. Eurostat, the EU’s statistics agency, regularly publishes Member State figures, which can be found at:http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Asylum_quarterly_report.

Refugees: Children

baroness stroud: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the average waiting time from submission of application to arrival in the UK for unaccompanied refugee children whose asylum applications are lodged in (1) France, and (2) Greece.

baroness williams of trafford: The Dublin III Regulation is a long-standing EU agreement to determine responsibility for examining an asylum application. It does not cover those who have been determined as refugees. We are committed to ensuring transfers take place quickly. As per the Regulation, Member States are obliged to transfer individuals as soon as possible, and at least within 6 months of accepting the transfer.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Charities: Finance

lord farmer: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they plan to disburse the £330 million of funding made available from dormant bank and building society accounts, which was announced on 4 January.

lord farmer: To ask Her Majesty's Government by what specific process charitable organisations should apply for funds to be disbursed from the £330 million fund drawn from dormant bank and building society accounts, which was announced on 4 January.

lord farmer: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to use the £330 million fund drawn from dormant bank and building society accounts, announced on 4 January, to provide emergency funding to well-governed charitable organisations which find themselves in financial difficulty as a result of changes to local authority funding structures.

lord ashton of hyde: The release of £330m of dormant accounts announced on 4 January will be used to help the homeless, disadvantaged young people, financial inclusion initiatives and other good causes in the UK over the next four years. The government will work closely with the Big Lottery Fund, as well as a range of social sector and private sector partners to develop these initiatives over the coming months, and further details on how these funds will be distributed will be announced this year. The government remains committed to a thriving and sustainable voluntary, community and social enterprise sector.